Yukihana Posted December 10, 2009 Report Share Posted December 10, 2009 Hello everyone. I'm hoping someone on here can help answer this. I have a 14 month female Husky who seems to be slightly underweight in that I can clearly see her bones protruding next to her tail. Also, when she takes deep breathes, you can sometimes see her ribs. She is a highly active dog and I'm hoping that I just need to put her on a food that contains higher calories and might be more suited to an active Husky's needs. Currently she's on Nature's Variety - Lamb/Oatmeal (24 Protein/16 Fat, 409 Kcal/Cup). I plan on rotating her over to Acana - Sport & Agility which is 33 protein/22 Fat - 4650 kcal/kg (460 kcal per 250 ml cup). I'm also looking into Earthborn Holistic Primitive which is another really high performance formula, but seems rather extreme in the amount of calories it contains. I'm saving that as a last resort... Anyways, I'm hoping that the fact she has protruding hips isn't a sign of hip dysplasia. She doesn't show any signs of pain after she goes out for long runs or walks and is always running around the backyard playing. But I should probably get her in for an OFA exam when she turns 2 to just be on the safe side. I would like to upload some pictures and a video of her walking and maybe someone on here can just let me know if they think it's a case of her being under-weight or if this is a sign of hip dysplasia. I will try and get these up ASAP. Thanks for any insight/suggestions you offer. - Jon Edit: I'm goin to get her into the Vet tomorrow and have her weighed. Right now I could only guess as to what it is. I'll be sure to re-update this post when I have that information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Val (Zebedee) Posted December 10, 2009 Report Share Posted December 10, 2009 Hiya, Jon, welcome to the forum Sounds to me like you're doing the best thing by booking a vet appointment, there's not a lot we could tell from pics (although we'd love to see them ) as there may be an underlying issue, it may just be she burns off more than she's eating as she's so energetic! Some of the more experienced breeder - owners may be able to tell more from the pics. I'm assuming your giving her the daily measurements of food as per the pack's instructions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yukihana Posted December 10, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 10, 2009 Hiya, Jon, welcome to the forum Sounds to me like you're doing the best thing by booking a vet appointment, there's not a lot we could tell from pics (although we'd love to see them ) as there may be an underlying issue, it may just be she burns off more than she's eating as she's so energetic! Some of the more experienced breeder - owners may be able to tell more from the pics. I'm assuming your giving her the daily measurements of food as per the pack's instructions? Thanks for the reply! In an attempt to increase her weight we are currently feeding 3 cups a day of Nature's Variety. According to the instructions this is about half a cup more than what you'd feed a normal 50 lb dog. How active that 50 lb dog is, I don't know...But she doesn't appear to be putting on any weight even with 3 cups. So I'm thinking that I'll switch to a higher protein/higher fat quality food and see what happens. Her spine also appears to protrude out more than what I think it should. I'm pretty convinced that this is simply a nutrition issue, but on the other hand, I'm worried about hip dysplasia as well because my wife loves to jog and I'm thinking she may have over-exercised her from the 6 months to 12 months stage of development. Would this cause her hips to protrude though, is what I'm wondering. She gets jogged at least 10 miles a week total. And I walk her a couple miles each day. She is also running around and playing in the backyard a lot...So, it's hard to say. I just hope she doesn't have hip dysplasia. I'm so worried. I'd be really heartbroken if that was the case. I know it's best to wait until they are 2 years of age to have them done, but I think I will go ahead and have a preliminary scan done on her. Not knowing...is just driving me crazy. I'll have pictures up later today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raindog Posted December 10, 2009 Report Share Posted December 10, 2009 It sounds like she is too thin rather than having a hip problem. Prominent pin bones are a sure sign of a dog being underweight. I know this might sound counter-intuitive, but I would try her on a lower protein food. Unless she is working hard in harness, she really doesn't need a high protein food. Siberian Huskies have one of the most efficient metabolisms found in canines and are able to make effective use of even low protein foods. With their original Chukchi owners, they might run all day every day for little more than a fish head or chunk of blubber. All you are doing if you feed unnecessarily high protein food is a - increasing energy levels - so that she will be hyperactive (It's a bit like you or me snorting amphetamine every day); and b - increasing the proportion of unprocessed food in her pooh - ie wasting your money as it goes straight through. We find that a large proportion of the young Siberians coming into rescue as "uncontrollable" have been fed on high protein food, and that they calm down significantly when put on a lower protein diet as well as gaining weight. Mick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cat Posted December 10, 2009 Report Share Posted December 10, 2009 What are her stools like? If her stools are often runny or very soft it may be she is not digesting it properly and therefore not gaining weight. My boy was like this when he was a puppy and got painfully thin before we found out he had a severe intollerance to rice. Maybe there is something similar going on with your girl. Also you may actually be overfeeding her. huskies don't need as much as other breeds of the same size and if she is being fed too much it will just all come stright out the other end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah Posted December 10, 2009 Report Share Posted December 10, 2009 great replies guys added to rep. One question - do you know if her parents were hip and eye scored before mating? If so, are you able to speak to the breeder to find out what the scores were? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yukihana Posted December 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2009 great replies guys added to rep. One question - do you know if her parents were hip and eye scored before mating? If so, are you able to speak to the breeder to find out what the scores were? Raindog - Thanks for the information. Is there any particular low protein you would recommend I try? Cat - Her stools are very healthy actually. This has certainly been a major benefit to feeding Nature's Variety. However, I think the kibble formula is inadequete in meeting the caloric metabolism our dog is requring. Sarah - Her parents were both varified with healthy hips. So if there were to be any signs of this in my dog, it would most likely be brought on by environmental factors, such as *possible* over-exercise from the 6 month to 12 months stage of her development. However, I'm not sure what amount would be considered too much exercise for a siberian puppy though. I'm probably just over-worrying the hip dysplasia thing. She exhibits no signs of it. And it looks like having prominent hip bones is not a sign either. This was relieving to find out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah Posted December 11, 2009 Report Share Posted December 11, 2009 I would think that if it was hip dysplasia that you would tell by her gait as well. At least you know her parents were both clear so that's a good thing. With regards to how much exercise a pup should get, the general rule of thumb is considered to be 5 mins per month of age so at 6 months old around 30 mins per day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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